Beverage containers for sodas, juices, fruit drinks, etc. of the type incorporating a pull tab and pull ring in a top portion of the container have, generally gained wide acceptance with the beverage industry and consumers alike. Typically, the ring is pulled to separate the tab from the container along a weakened seam to thereby provide access to the contained beverage. One means of drinking the beverage, of course, is to insert a straw in order to sip liquid therefrom. It is also a common practice to pour container contents into a glass for drinking.
Numerous improvements have been proposed and various modifications developed in which the container is provided with built-in straw by a variety of mechanisms including, for instance, a resilient bellows structure contained on the bottom of the can which serves to bias the top end of the straw against the underside of the pull tab top. In this connection, reference is made to the patent issued to Mack et al, U.S. Pat. No. 4,228,913 which disclosure is incorporated herein.
The Mack invention is stated to comprise a straw guide which aligns the top assembly of the straw against the underside of the tab top assembly. Further, the straw guide is used to secure the straw within the can so that the top end of the straw will not move around within the can and lose its alignment with the underside of the tab top assembly. The Mack straw has an integrally formed, resilient bellow structure for biasing the top end of the straw against the underside of the tab top so that the top end of the straw is ejected through the drinking slot formed when the tab top assembly is pulled off.
Payne in U.S. Pat. No. 4,109,817, suggests an alternative assembly wherein a collapsible straw is slideably journaled within a tube mounted on the wall of the container. The tube retains the straw in alignment with the container opening and the straw includes a float mounted on the straw adjacent its bottom end and being exterior of the tube. Thus, when the pull tab closure is opened, the straw rises within the tube because of the float until the upper portion of the straw projects through the opening above the top.
While the foregoing skilled artisans have recognized significant advantages of enhancing hygienic features of beverage containers and preventing cut lips of a drinker who sips directly from the pull tab slot, the developed modification has not generally been convenient to fabricate. This unfortunately results in a prohibitive cost in terms of incorporating such improvements into conventional beverage can designs.
Accordingly, those skilled in the art have recognized a significant need for an integral dispenser straw system for beverage cans which may be conveniently manufactured at modest cost, providing a mechanism which will be easily integrated with conventional beverage container structures and which can be fabricated in conventional production facilities. The present invention fulfills these needs.